


Lesser Lives

by Ilthit



Category: The Violet Carlyle Mysteries - Beth Byers
Genre: F/F, Unrequited Love, Wordcount: 100-1.000, Wordcount: 100-500
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-05-12
Updated: 2019-05-12
Packaged: 2020-03-01 13:06:07
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 345
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18800944
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ilthit/pseuds/Ilthit
Summary: Lila always loved Violet best.





	Lesser Lives

**Author's Note:**

> Set, sort of, during _Gin & Murder_.

When Denny said he preferred Violet over Lila, his wife knew very well it was a lie. But, oh, the complexities behind that lie. It followed, after all, Lila saying the very same thing, only both of them knew that for Lila it was very true. Denny had been trying to turn it into a joke. A defensive little kick... and only the two of them understood it.

God knew Lila loved Denny. She had married him with no regrets, would stay married to him with the full expectation of a long and comfortable marriage. Lila did adore comfort. It suited her. There was nothing she liked better than a nice long morning under the covers, only getting up for a late breakfast and a walk before it was time to head out for a day of fun.

A life with Violet had never been an option. What she had of Vi was all she'd ever have. And beyond that, it was possible Lila could not have withstood it, had she got it. Violet was all sparkle and power and wickedness, even beyond her tendency to trip over corpses. Add to that the scandal of the two of them together--the earl's wild daughter and the respectable girl from a good family. The idea was as exciting as it was terrifying.

Perhaps in another world, with a different Lila and a different Violet, they could have lit up the sky, these two dangerous women in love. In this one, Lila teased and cajoled and laughed, and Violet soaked it all up. They belonged to one another, just the same.

And still... God. Violet. That charming liar's smile when she wanted to avoid a question. Her dark eyes lit up with excitement. Her voice. Her slim hands. The way she twisted and cried in her sleep, when no amount of soothing noises would settle her. The plummeting depths of her.

Love Denny as she might, love her life as she did, sometimes Lila wondered if, in choosing comfort, she had killed a future worth suffering for.


End file.
